February 7, 2012

Travel is good for kids

Many parents feel their adventurous days are over as soon as Junior enters their lives. Once you’re a parent, suddenly you’ve got to toe the line, live like everybody else, and do the responsible thing, right? Right?

Maybe not.

Kids learn to be flexible while traveling

There are plenty of reasons why travel is good for kids. Whether you are traveling for a two-week vacation or heading out for a multi-year vagabonding lifestyle, travel is good.

Travel helps kids learn the world is a wonderful place. In today’s society where most people fear others, travel helps children learn that the vast majority of people in our world are kind and generous people who will go the extra mile to help a fellow human.

Travel helps kids develop communication skills. As they travel amongst various cultures, they’ll communicate with people of all ages and in many languages. Children will pick up foreign languages and perfect the fine art of sign language when they can’t get their message across with words.

Travel broadens kids’ education. There’s nothing like being a place to learn about that place. The history and culture come alive when you see it being lived. Textbooks are great resources, but don’t come close to replicating the experience of actually being there and being able to see, hear, smell, taste, and touch it.

Travel helps kids become more flexible and to adapt to changes easier. We all know the old adage that even the best laid plans will go awry. While traveling, plans change daily – minute by minute at times – and kids need to adapt. Through those experiences they learn that things will be OK, even if they aren’t what was expected.

8 Responses to “Travel is good for kids”

I completely agree, this allows children to widen their horizons and see the world in a different way. Recently a Portuguese traveler started a year long trip with his family, including small daughter (http://www.pikitim.com/, in Portuguese)

The third point (“travel broadens kids’ education”) is especially keen, which is why I usually give my nephews travel-related gifts for the holidays. Next month they’re going to see New York and Philly with me. Not too exotic (we’ll do that later), but it’s a great way for them to get a sense of the world beyond their home in Kansas.

My wife is not originally from America, and her siblings and extended family live in at least four other countries. We have visited all of them numerous times, and started taking our only child on these annual trips when she was three years old. Since then, we’ve taken her on an overseas trip 8 out of the last 9 years. These experiences have been overwhelmingly positive. She is way ahead of me in international travel experience, for her age, and now has a desire to see many more parts of the world. I never got to travel abroad until I was 21. Travel has definitely made a big, positive difference in our lives.

Young children have an unbiased way of soaking into the moment, where as adults, it seems we constantly fight to cling to that thread. I’m looking forward to taking a young girl out on the road traveling with me this summer. Though she’s now 20, I’ve watched her grow up since the age of five.

I absolutely love the idea of travel being a force for education, cultural understanding, and personal growth. If I had kids, I’d not hesitate to bring them with my around the globe. Excellent points Nancy!